


a cat with mistletoe, truth or dare, and why the most meaningful christmas gift is your boyfriend/"partner" partner

by SisComKnight



Category: Persona 4, Persona Series
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, Gen, M/M, personasecretsanta2017
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-19 23:38:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13134582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SisComKnight/pseuds/SisComKnight
Summary: Looking around, nothing drastic seems to have happened to make Rise stop talking. All he hears is the Christmas radio in the background.Wait.Unfortunately, Yosuke recognizes the song. Even more unfortunately, so does Yu. And everyone else. Geez, why did American culture spread so far…"Yosuke-senpai, you have to sing! I know you know the lyrics.""No, I don't, Rise --""You do! You sang it in school under your breath! Don't act like you don't know, do it for Yu-kun --""You gotta do it, Yosuke-senpai." Even Kanji's against him now… Rise and Yukiko are bad influences on him.On that note, is it "make Yosuke do embarrassing things by using the 'do it for Yu' tactic" day, or what? He's beginning to think it is."Fine! I'll do it," he shouts, feeling his face literally burn.(Had it become tradition to make Yosuke sing "All I Want For Christmas is Y(o)u? Yes, it has. It's painful and cheesy, but at least it makes Yu beam so brightly Yosuke thinks he needs sunglasses.)





	a cat with mistletoe, truth or dare, and why the most meaningful christmas gift is your boyfriend/"partner" partner

**Author's Note:**

> merry christmas! this is for my giftee, s3lene! i hope you're having a wonderful holiday season and that you enjoy this gift.

_ I will -- _

_ BURN MY DREAD! _

...that's pretty grating on the ears. Especially that pseudo-cymbal sound.

_ BURN MY DREAD! _

"Nngh... turn that off..."

Not willing to open his eyes, Yu pats around the nightstand until he locates his phone, swiping his thumb across the screen and hoping he turned the alarm of instead of snoozing it. After a second of deliberation, he decides it would be a waste to get up now, even if it is… 8 AM, if that alarm had gone off at the right time. After all, he's warm and still feels sleep tugging at the edges of his consciousness, so Yu rolls over back into Yosuke's arms and is content to bury his face in his partner's chest.

"Thanks," Yosuke mumbles, clumsily kissing the top of the other boy's head. 

With that, Yu snuggles closer, allowing himself to slip into a pleasantly comfortable slumber.

  
  


Jazzy electric organ, is what he thinks he hears the next time he wakes up, and then the sound's accompanied by a bass guitar. Wait, that's his second alarm. 

Opening his eyes, it is immediately apparent to Yu that sunlight's already illuminating the room. He reaches over to turn off the alarm, already starting to miss the cozy warmth of sleep. A second glance at his phone tells him it is 9 o'clock, about time to start getting ready. First --

"Yosuke, wake up," Yu whispers, smiling at the other's sleeping expression. With Yu still being wrapped up in Yosuke's arms, their faces are mere inches apart, so he sees how his boyfriend's nose scrunches up a little before he opens his eyes. He's so cute.

Sleepily, Yosuke returns Yu's smile with a small grin of his own before asking: "...what time'sit?"

"It's nine. It may be Christmas, but we're still open for a while, remember?"

Yes, they had to work on Christmas. But that was what came with running a small but often popular cafe in the middle of Shibuya, after all. Yu hadn't exactly planned to take over shop, but after the previous owner had started another branch, he'd appreciated Yu's help (and pastries) so much that he transferred ownership to him, along with the room just upstairs of the cafe. The job was actually perfect in his opinion; Yosuke still suffered at their local Junes as assistant manager, and he himself was able to work on his manuscript. However, his baking skills had… caused the business to gain more attention than planned. Thus, the small shop, named Café Inaba at Yosuke's suggestion, would be open from 10:30 to 3. 

"Ugh, yeah. Right. Hopefully the rush won't be too bad," Yosuke sighs, sitting up. "I can't believe I'm working on Christmas, thank God it's not at Junes…"

Yu chuckles, seeing his partner's bedhead. "Yeah, thanks again. Let's wash up so we have some good out of the oven before opening time," he yawned, stretching. 

"Alright," comes the response, then, "Hey, Yu?"

He turns to Yosuke, and -- oh. Yosuke's hands gently cup his cheeks, and the next thing he feels is Yosuke's lips on his own. It's a gentle, chaste kiss, but the way Yosuke  _ looks _ at him and says, "Merry Christmas, Yu. I love you" -- that's enough to make him melt like the snow outside.

  
  


Yu's gorgeous, Yosuke thinks as he watches his partner bustle around the kitchen. He himself is stationed at the counter, ready to greet any customers. It isn't like Junes here, where he has to consciously work for that patented Customer Service demeanor, and he genuinely enjoys helping his boyfriend out. Today, only the two of them are managing shop, so Yosuke lets himself stand and watch as Yu put a small cake pan into the oven. If anyone does ask, yes, he is staring at Yu's butt, but he has that privilege, so no one can really stop him.

In quiet times like these, he's stopped trying to fill the silence like he did in high school, because he instead marvels at how content Yu has been. It's been years since the case, since he fell in love with his best friend while chasing a murderer, and Yu's slowly opened up to him first, then the rest of their team -- their friends, their family. And there's been a visible change, too; the burden of the mantles of "leader," "sensei," and "senpai," that used to weigh down his shoulders has been lifted by the support of the whole group, and Yu's stance is more relaxed, more open. 

It's amazing to him. Yu's amazing.

The jingle of the bell on the shop's door jolts Yosuke out of his thoughts. As he turns to greet the customer, the words, "Welcome to Café Inaba," on his tongue, he sees a familiar mop of black hair.

"Hey, Amamiya-kun!" he says, raising a hand in welcome at the teen. Yosuke isn't too well acquainted with Ren Amamiya, but he's seen him around. Amamiya occasionally works part-time at the bakery and tends to frequent the shop as a customer as well -- Yosuke's not entirely sure why the kid had taken a job here since he's already employed at his guardian's cafe, but whatever, really. Yu's told him that Amamiya and his friends have had some… experiences with the "unusual," putting it lightly, like they themselves had had, and, more than once, had brought his friends here. Seeing them reminds Yosuke of his own high school days, and he's glad that they're close. Everyone deserves a friend group like that.

Ren smiles, waving. "Hi, Hanamura-san. Is Yu-san in?" Man, that kid is still carting around that cat in his bag? It'd surprised him when he first heard Morgana talk… Oh well. 

"Yeah, I can go get him," Yosuke replies, turning back to the kitchen. His boyfriend had escaped from where he can see him, so Yosuke goes into the kitchen and nearly ends up colliding with Yu, who's holding a tray of tiny cakes to put in the display case.

"Whoa -- sorry, partner. Amamiya-kun's here and wants to talk to you," Yosuke says, regaining his balance. 

Yu smiles at him, and good god, he's beautiful. It's almost like… he's an angel on earth, or something -- poetry is not Yosuke's strong suit, obviously. Well, even though he can't describe it, Yu's so stunning that he stops and gapes for a second. 

"Hey," Ren-kun calls from the counter, sounding as if he has a deadly smirk on his face, "Look up, maybe?"

With a sense of slight dread, Yosuke does. What greets him is the sight of Morgana, perched precariously on the top of the cabinet near the door, holding a sprig of mistletoe above his and Yu's heads.

…he can't even bring himself to be mad at Morgana entering the serving area. It's perfect timing, too, even if Yu looks a little unimpressed.

"Well, partner?" he teases, grinning slightly.

It's clear that Yu is only pretending to pout, but it's almost painfully adorable. Especially since it's so obvious that he's trying his best not to smile.

"Fine," his boyfriend mock-sighs, leaning over the tray to kiss him lightly. It lasts maybe a second but leaves Yosuke feeling like he could take on every shadow they've ever confronted, even his own. Alright, that's a little exaggeration, but it was. Really nice.

The moment is only slightly broken when Yu hands him the pastries so he can pet Morgana properly.

Ren laughs when Morgana yells (meows?) in complaint.

  
  


While Yu would have been perfectly content to waste the day away after closing up, he can't. It is, after all, his task to ensure no one gets food poisoning when the team gets together. Especially at parties. Lately, he's gotten Kanji and Naoto to help with appetizers and whatnot, since they're decently skilled at cooking; Yosuke would've helped too, but he's currently decorating their apartment. 

Everyone else was going to be heading towards the Hanamura-Narukami residence, since it had just become the norm to congregate where Yu lived, ever since high school. It was definitely going to be cramped…

Well, one of the benefits of living in a cafe was having business-grade utensils and containers at his disposal. The food was going to be amazing.

"Hmm… we should have beef stew, since we bought meat," he muses, taking out the ingredients. "Kanji said he'd bring bread, too. That'll work well."

It's been some time since he's cooked for everyone, Yu thinks. He's forever grateful and pleased that the Investigation Team has stayed just as tight as they were when they were solving the case, and even more people have joined their family since then -- Labrys, Kanami and her friends, and maybe even the Shadow Ops. (He's not quite sure if they're exactly family, but they are friends.) And when he thinks back to how he started his second year of high school with no close friends, it's nearly a miracle that he's been blessed like this.

Yosuke comes down as he's finishing up and wraps his arms around Yu as he tastes the stew. Yosuke's wearing one of Yu's cat Christmas sweaters -- which looks unfairly cute on him -- and peers over Yu's shoulder at the pot on the stove.

"Gimme some," he prompts. Yu does, and Yosuke swallows it and praises him. "Wow, that's really good. Amazing as usual, partner!" 

He can't help but feel that being with Yosuke, being in love with an amazing, wonderful young man who loves him back, is a miracle.

"What time is it right now?"

Glancing at the clock, Yosuke informs him that it's already five. "The others should be getting here soon, huh?" Yu notes, covering the pot of stew. "I can't wait."

And it's true, he thinks to himself as he leans back into Yosuke's chest, feeling safe and comfortable. He's ecstatic, because these people are his family, the people he loves.

  
  


"Yo! Open up, it's freezing out here!"

The door downstairs is presumably kicked after a few seconds, which irritates Yosuke; as much as he cares for Chie and Yukiko, who are probably the ones to have arrived, he just wants to stay sitting on the couch with Yu cuddled up next to him.

However, those dreams are shattered when his partner  _ betrays _ him and gets up from the very comfy position he was just in, leaving Yosuke suffering.

"No, Yu, come back…" he whines, pouting. His partner's too smart and walks away without sparing him a glance, laughing as he descends the stairs. Unfair.

"Thanks, Yu-kun," Yukiko greets, coughing lightly. "It started snowing a little on our way here, and we almost got lost!"

"Hm, I hope the others are already on their way," he hears Yu muse as the three make their way up the stairs. "Hopefully it won't get too bad, but we were going to have everyone stay over even if it doesn't get to that."

Yukiko claps her hands, delighted. They've arrived in upstairs, but it's Chie and Yukiko, so he can sulk around on the couch a little longer. 

Unfortunately, Chie doesn't appear to have the same idea. When she spots him as she walks around the sofa, she frowns in a way that makes Yosuke curl up in defense. ...he's been traumatized, okay?

"And what're you doing lazing around, Yosuke?" Chie challenges, motioning for him to sit up. He's kicked lightly when he doesn't move.

Groaning, he finally decides to get up -- it's better for his well being, anyways -- to properly greet Yukiko and Chie.

"So how've you guys been? Got any inn horror stories?"

At that, Chie shudders and almost looks like she'll get up and kick him again, but Yukiko lights up; after all, scary stories are her trademark.

"Well, some guests have said that they've seen --"

"That's enough!" Chie interrupts promptly, covering Yukiko's mouth with her hand. "I don't wanna hear it! It's Christmas!"

Yukiko looks like she's thinking, then nods. "You're right, Chie. I should wait before everyone gets here first!"

During this exchange, Yu's sat down next to him again but not allowed Yosuke to get too settled in, likely due to the fact that someone else is going to show up soon. Somewhat absentmindedly, Yu opens up the box of french macarons that the girls brought by way of food offering and eats one, watching the two girlfriends squabble.

"-- tell the one about the demon cat?"

"Nonono, don't! Yu-kun, tell her she shouldn't!" Chie looks at Yu desperately, eyes pleading for help. It's funny, and Yosuke can't help but snicker at the sight. "Yosuke, not you too…"

"Sorry, Chie," his partner offers, looking slightly apologetic despite his amused expression. "You guys haven't changed, it's nice to see."

At that, Chie's expression (as well as her grip on Yukiko's sweater) softens, and Yukiko smiles. "Yes, you either. You two are still attached at the hip, like cats cuddling! Even all the time that's passed hasn't changed our friendship," she observes, obviously pleased. Yosuke feels the same; he's been so glad for everyone. Chie and Yukiko were the first of his genuine friends, and he's endlessly glad for it, even if they clash occasionally. 

Yu's also wearing a tender expression, and they all share a serene silence lit by the soft glow of Christmas lights until another knock shatters the quiet.

"I'll get it," Yosuke murmurs, standing up. He wonders who it'll be this time -- Naoto, Kanji? Maybe Rise and Teddie.

When he opens the front door, he's rather happily surprised to see that all four of them standing outside. His underclassmen (minus Teddie) are bundled up, each holding their contributions and gifts in their arms. It appears that the snow has started to pick up, so he quickly ushers them inside.

As they file upstairs, Teddie chatters about how "it was so cold, Yosuke! I almost became a Topsicle!" It makes sense, though, since Teddie's only wearing a thin sweater and light jacket. Yosuke scolds him for not dressing more warmly but can't bring himself to be too disappointed, just worried. Jeez, even after all this time, Ted's still a kid… 

"Hey, guys," Yu welcomes, taking the containers of food from Kanji and Naoto. "I'm glad everyone got here safely, but with this weather, we're going to have to have a sleepover."

As expected, everyone's excited. Yosuke is, too -- it's been ages since they've gotten together and spent the night. They'll have to get out all their extra bedding and pillows, and someone will probably want a blanket fort (Yosuke looks at Teddie, who probably is already planning to start a pillow fight as well). Well, first things first though.

"So…" he starts, looking around. "I think we should eat before the food gets cold, and we can talk over dinner. Sound good, partner?"

Nodding, Yu begins to delegate jobs. It's nice to see that hasn't changed, either, and sometimes that kind of natural superiority is pretty attracti-- wait, there's other people around. ...anyways, everyone gets their meals and sits, rather squished, on the two couches facing each other, with the exception of Teddie, who elects to sit on the floor. It's very comfortable but also rather precarious, since Yosuke has to actually put in some effort to not spill his food with the way his boyfriend is smushing him against the arm of the couch. 

"Hey, partner?"

"Yes, Yosuke?"

It doesn't help that Yu is the actual image of innocence, but fortunately Yosuke's built up enough resistance to that face. "You're kind of squishing me here."

This time, Yu actually starts pouting, and it's  _ killing _ Yosuke. "But I like being close to you, and you're warm."

"I can't eat like this!" he complains, looking anywhere but his partner's face. If he looks, his resolve will definitely break. 

"Ooh, you can have senpai feed you!" Rise exclaims from the other couch. She's a traitor, and she simply giggles when Yosuke glares at her. "What? It's not like you haven't done it before, and it's cute!"

Yu leans his head on Yosuke's shoulder, and Yosuke feels his willpower draining away. God, even Naoto seems to be for the idea, smiling knowingly when he sighs in defeat.

He makes a show of it, even though everyone knew it was going to be a hopeless endeavor to resist. "Fine," he grumbles. Even with all his theatrics, he's only slightly disappointed, since this arrangement makes it a little harder to participate in the conversation. So, Yosuke lets Yu feed him. And, yeah, it's not bad, especially since the food is stellar.

"Well, did'ya ever find out if that cat was pregnant or not?" Kanji asks, easing back into their previous conversation. 

At the mention of cats, Yu lights up. That's normal. "Yeah, she gave birth back in August. A bit late, but they were so cute…" He sighs, obviously thinking about the litter of tiny kittens that the cat who liked to hang around their cafe had had. "I would've taken her in a long time ago, but… the cafe and such."

"And that's the only thing stopping you." It's a fact, not a question.

"Of course."

Naoto taps their chin, reminiscing. "I did often see Yu-senpai around the riverbank, petting cats. Even when he visits, that happens… he appears to put time aside just for that purpose."

"Seriously?" Chie exclaims, looking shocked. Why is she surprised? Yu's been like this since high school; he'd spent an entire day out once, and Yosuke had had to stop him and drag him back to the Dojima residence before nightfall. "Just for that? I knew you liked cats, Yu-kun, but that's almost crazy."

"Hey, it's not too bad," offers Rise, "but if we stay on the topic of cats now we'll never stop talking about it. And -- oh my god."

Huh? Looking around, nothing drastic seems to have happened to make Rise stop talking. All he hears is the Christmas radio in the background.

Wait.

Unfortunately, Yosuke recognizes the song. Even more unfortunately, so does Yu. And everyone else. Geez, why did American culture spread so far… 

"Yosuke-senpai, you have to sing! I know you know the lyrics." 

"No, I don't, Rise --"

"You do! You sang it in school under your breath! Don't act like you don't know, do it for Yu-kun --"

"You gotta do it, Yosuke-senpai." Even Kanji's against him now… Rise and Yukiko are bad influences on him.

On that note, is it "make Yosuke do embarrassing things by using the 'do it for Yu' tactic" day, or what? He's beginning to think it is.

"Fine! I'll do it," he shouts, feeling his face literally burn. 

(Had it become tradition to make Yosuke sing "All I Want For Christmas is Y(o)u? Yes, it has. It's painful and cheesy, but at least it makes Yu beam so brightly Yosuke thinks he needs sunglasses.)

  
  
  


Wake up with boyfriend? Check.

Kiss boyfriend under mistletoe? Did that.

Cuddle on couch with boyfriend in a room gently illuminated by Christmas lights? Of course.

Have dinner with boyfriend and friends? It was really, really nice.

Embarrass boyfriend by making him sing Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas is You," fully in English? Obviously.

Yu isn't sure what else is missing from his Christmas day checklist, but he's sure that it'd be perfectly fine to just stop here. 

But why stop now? It's only six-forty, and no one's tired yet. Actually, all they've done is eat dinner, and that's when, to everyone's surprise, Naoto suggests playing a game. 

Kanji scratches the back of his head. "Huh? I mean, sure, that'd be fun, but I never guessed you'd suggest playing truth or dare, Naoto."

They flush and duck their head into their collar. "We actually… haven't played many games of that nature since we were all in school together, and they're rather enjoyable when they don't get out of hand. And we now know Rise-san has a rather respectable alcohol tolerance, so she should not pretend to be drunk like she did during the Tatsumi Port Island trip."

"You're still on about that?" Rise asks, looking a little ruffled. "It wasn't just me, you know, Yukiko-senpai  _ and _ Yu-senpai did that too!"

Yu flashes back to that time and instantly tries to repress the memory -- not to say it was bad, per se, but it was… not his best moment. He'd gotten caught up in the atmosphere to the point where it started being extreme.

"It was fun," Yukiko nods unhelpfully.

"O-kay! We'll start with Naoto-chan, since they offered to start the game," cheers Teddie, pointing at the unlucky detective, who freezes and starts to protest.

"That's not --"

"Truth or dare!"

Seemingly seeing no way out, Naoto breathes deeply. "Very well, then. Truth."

"Ooh, I call this one!" Chie is the first one to raise her hand, eyes sparkling with excitement. "What's the most interesting case you've heard of this year? I've heard some good ones, but I bet you have something more interesting since you're a renown detective."

Looking surprised, Naoto thinks for a moment. "Well… there has been a surge of interest in the case of the Phantom Thieves, but I'm sure you already knew that. How about… Goro Akechi? Some of my colleagues believe his 'work' is phony, and I'm inclined to agree."

Yu blinks. Personally, he'd thought so too -- the way Akechi-san solved cases was far too clean to be realistic. Yosuke, on the other hand, has apparently only realized something like this just now.

"Wait, seriously? Huh, I can… kind of see it," he says, slumping into the couch. "Well, that's enough from Naoto-kun. Let's go clockwise, so Kanji. Truth or dare?"

Kanji looks up, obviously unprepared to be put on the spot. "Uhhh, dare?"

"I call it!" comes from Yukiko. Ah… Yu hopes nothing too drastic will happen; it is his house and cafe…

Apparently, Yosuke's thinking similarly. "Hey, don't make him do anything ridiculous."

"Of course not! Kanji-kun, would you say that phrase you said when you were on T.V. on that biker special? You haven't done it since you're friends with us."

Everyone looks perplexed, except Chie, who's got her head in her hands. "Yukiko, I thought you dropped this a while ago…"

"Whaddaya mean, Yukiko-senpai?" 

Yukiko thinks for a second, then declares, "I don't remember."

"She means… the 'get bent' thing, Kanji-kun. You can opt out if you want to…" Chie explains, suffering from some serious second-hand embarrassment. Ahh, so that was it? Well, Yukiko and Nanako had both had a kind of fascination with that special.

"Wait." Kanji blinks. "That's it?"

"No, no, you have to say it with passion and anger!" clarifies Yukiko matter-of-factly. "It has to be intense!"

"Uhh, okay?" Yu can agree with that sentiment. Everyone is confused now, but Kanji yells, "Get bent!" which seems to satisfy Yukiko, who bursts into giggles, covering her mouth.

"Alllllllllright." Yosuke breaks the increasingly-awkward silence, smoothing it over. "Ted, truth or dare?"

The blonde boy sits up and brightly answers, "Dare!" Huh… he's a little bit more worried now, since Teddie's more over the top than Kanji sometimes. Maybe he should've asked Yosuke to put the fragile decorations away.

No one speaks up immediately, so Yu offers, "I dare you to do a headstand for a minute. But over by the window, so you won't hurt yourself if you fall."

Promptly, Teddie runs over to the window and tries his best to get into a headstand position. When he can't, he calls out, "Yosuke! Kanji! Heeelp meee!!"

The two sigh, but relent. Yosuke looks like he expected this to happen, and they stand by Teddie on either side, helping to keep his legs straight.

It's a little silly, and Yu chuckles. He loves this -- being with everyone, messing around. They're all inside, together, cozy and happy.

Suddenly, Teddie flails and falls, even with Yosuke and Kanji supporting him. Ah. Oh well.

  
  


"The snow's really piled up, huh."

"It has," he says, nodding. They've somehow exhausted the entirety of truth-or-dare after three excruciating, entertaining, awkward hours. With the intensity of it all (why was it intense? That's another story), everyone had started to get tired, so Yu had taken his boyfriend to go get the extra bedding out. That wasn't to say everyone was going to go to sleep -- of course they weren't -- but it would be more comfortable and warm, so no losses in taking the blankets out now.

"...wow, we have a lot of blankets," observes Yosuke after opening their closet. Sure enough, it's full to the brim with pillows and comforters and more. 

"Well, we did need these the last time we had everyone over, you know?"

Sighing, Yosuke grabs a pile and lifts them. "Yeah, we did. I hope the girls and Ted don't make a mess this time… it was a nightmare."

Yu grimaces at the thought. "Yeah. At least they let us sleep in that morning."

"...I guess."

They return to the central room of their apartment, and Yosuke unceremoniously dumps the blankets he was holding on the floor. Kanji, Chie, and Yukiko had helped pushed the couches to a wall, creating a decently sized space on the floor. Immediately, Teddie and Rise grab the largest comforters and spread them out -- that is, Rise tries, and Teddie gets stuck in it somehow. How did he…?

"You guys know the rules, etcetera, etcetera," Yosuke shouts over the bubbling commotion of chatter. "No hogging, play safe, limit the PDA."

"You and senpai are the ones who need that last rule the most," retorts Rise, untangling Teddie from his blanket prison. 

Yosuke huffs. "That's because you guys are enablers -- don't look offended, Naoto-kun, you know you are too! And you," he whirls on Yu, finger pointed at his chest. "You just enjoy it! You're unfair."

His face is really cute, does he know that? "It's because you're cute."

"Just -- guh! I'm not winning this argument, am I."

Yu takes this opportunity to sneak behind him to pull him into a hug and puts his chin on his partner's shoulder. "Nope."

Chie laughs at Yosuke's slump of defeat. It occurs to Yu that maybe they should start actually setting up the bedding, but he doesn't want to let go of Yosuke… what a dilemma.

Seemingly tired of being embarrassed and simply resigned to his fate, Yosuke doesn't protest at all and lets everyone else do the arranging of various blankets and pillows. Sometimes it's nice just to sit back and watch. He's so glad to just  _ be _ , here with his family that he'd never expected to have.

Well, he's been in a reminiscent mood lately, hmm?

"Yosuke," Yu almost whispers into Yosuke's ear.

He turns to face Yu as well as he can, inevitably squishing their faces together. "Yeah, partner?"

"I'm so happy, so glad I met you. If not for you, I don't think I would've found our friends… thank you."

Yosuke seems like he's about to refute that, but he doesn't, smiling instead. "I don't think I would've without you either."

A little awkwardly, Yu gently kisses Yosuke's cheek. "I love you, you dork," he murmurs fondly.

"Wha -- you're the dork, you brought it up first!" Yosuke's struggling in his grip, trying to properly face Yu, but Yu squeezes him, keeping a firm hold on him. "Partner, let me go, I just wanna kiss you for real!"

"Okay, fine," Yu grins, not loosening his arms from around his boyfriend. 

"Yu, I'm serious!"

This time, he does give Yosuke enough room to turn. He's flushed and a little bit out of breath, but he does lean in to kiss Yu, sweet and slow. 

After maybe a substantial fifteen seconds, Yosuke's about to pull away when a pillow hits them solidly in the sides of their heads.

"No more PDA!" Chie shouts, obviously the culprit. "If you're gonna have that rule, follow it, or else let me make out with Yukiko!"

"Please, no," Naoto mutters. Yu's got to agree; Yukiko and Chie can get… intense pretty quickly. 

"Well, then, let's all sit down and open the gifts. While you two were messing around, we set up everything!" 

Just as she said, Yukiko's set up the blankets and bedding in a truly traditional style. Everyone else has settled down… wait, how long had they all been sitting there? 

Oh well.

"So, per usual, we're going to draw lots to see who goes first," Naoto explains, holding "And from there, we'll go clockwise again. Two presents at a time." When they see everyone nod in confirmation, they draw a stick and hold out the bag for everyone else.

"Okay, who's got the marked stick?" 

Chie raises her hand. "I do!"

Unsurprisingly, Yukiko starts applauding, but it tapers off rather quickly. They all go through and open their presents two by two, with Teddie surprising everyone with his increasingly thoughtful gifts. It's proof that he's matured, thinks Yu, and he couldn't be more proud of him.

They're on the last stretch of present opening, and it's Yosuke's turn. He's left Yu's gift for last, since they each had an uneven number of gifts to open.

The packaging is simple, since Yu firmly believes that while presentation is important, the contents should be even more so. Yosuke opens the small box, finding the letter that's been tucked inside. Carefully unfolding it, he begins to read:

"'Yosuke, Merry Christmas, partner. Thank you for spending another wonderful year with me. Every time I see you, my life becomes brighter and more vibrant, and I'm so lucky to have you here with me.' What the hell, partner, I'm the lucky one…

"'My present to you is something I requested Daidara-san to make the last time we visited Inaba. It's a pendant made from the… omnipotent orb.'" Yosuke stops reading here, and tries to ask Yu why, but he shushes him and tells him to go on. 

"'Before you say that this is a waste, you've saved me more times than any item ever could have, both very literally and in more subtle ways. You've helped me to learn to be true to myself; even though I never had to face my shadow, helping you and everyone else has caused me to grow tremendously.' You've helped us too," murmurs Yosuke before reading more. "'When you and I promised to be equal, it felt like a burden had lifted, because I didn't have to do things alone anymore. You've always been there for me.

"'You are an amazing person. You love and trust so strongly and always, always try your hardest in everything you do.'" He flushes, but manages to persevere. "'You can read and understand me better than anyone and always know what I need. Even if you don't realize it, you're a strong and responsible leader in your own right, and you have a passion for helping those in need. You're incredible compassionate and wonderful.'"

By this time, it looks like Yosuke might cry, as he sounds a little choked up as he reads, "'I'd love to stay by your side forever, if you'll have me. I love you. Love, your partner, Yu.'" Suddenly, he drops the letter and pulls Yu into a tight embrace, burying his face in Yu's shoulder. "Thank you, Yu, of course I want to be with you forever, you huge nerd." 

Yu feels like he might cry too, but he's full of joy and love and Yukiko, Rise, Chie, and Teddie are clapping and cheering, Kanji's already sobbing, and Naoto looks incredibly touched.

"Are you going to put the necklace on?" asks Rise once everyone's calmed down a little bit. 

"Agh, I almost forgot about that!" Yosuke gently lifts it out of the box, marvelling at how the colors of the pendant swirl together. "It's gorgeous, thanks, Yu."

He puts it on and grins. "It's not a waste, not after everything you said. Thank you so much, partner. Now open mine!"

Yu's also saved Yosuke's present for last, and it's a surprisingly heavy box that makes a thud when he sets it down. When he opens it, it's full of… notebooks and journals?

"I don't know if you noticed or not, but I've actually been keeping journals since I moved to Inaba," his boyfriend says, looking a little bit shy. "My mom suggested it, and I kept it up until around now. I'm not as eloquent as you, but these have all my thoughts and feelings that are kind of personal, and I think you deserve to have them."

Honestly, Yu's a little… shocked. But obviously these mean a lot to Yosuke, and he's sure that they include some things Yosuke's never said aloud. "Thank you, Yosuke. It… means a lot that you trust me so much."

Kanji hasn't really stopped crying, and Teddie and Rise are sniffling again. Yukiko scoops everyone up into a huge hug, and they stay like that for a minute or so, basking in the warmth of everyone's love for each other.

"Oookay, I think it's time for bed!" Yosuke reasons, likely feeling a little bit squished between Yu and Teddie. "Let's clean up so we can get to sleep. It's almost midnight!"

With everyone's help, cleaning up is quick, so Yu has more time to snuggle up cozily in Yosuke's arms again.

"Hey, partner."

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Teddie whacks them with another pillow. "Go to sleep, lovebirds!"

And so they do.

**Author's Note:**

> comments/kudos/constructive criticism welcomed  
> find me on tumblr @siscomknight


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